IBM UK is cutting some contractor rates.
IBM UK uses Hays, a specialist recruitment group, as a source for contract staff. According to Claire Fowler at Hays, "This week technical subcontractors engaged on IBM business have been notified of changes to their daily rates."
She added that Hays always tries to ensure rates are …

There is no harm in asking

If the contractors take 10% less, that means several times more money for the salesmen and bosses. So why wouldn't they ask? Loyalty? The sanctity of contracts? Those are concept for the little people.

IBM Sweden

IBM Sweden are also cutting contractor rates by 10% here as well. But only on selected contractors - for selected read well paid.

My agent told me that quite a few (40% from his agency) have said no and will walk.

IBM has quite a few warm bodies on the bench at the moment - drawing their salaries and not billing customers a modest fee. The plan is that the warm bodies will be pushed into any role. Need I say there is no budget or resources to retrain .

History repeating itself

IBM, like all big businesses jump on any excuse to screw the little guy. It's no longer about making a profit: it has to be an obscene profit! And IBM + Hays have a history of doing this. Around the summer of 2001 NTL (now Virgin) outsourced all their I.T. to IBM and all the incumbent contractors were handed over to Hays whether they wanted it or not. A mandatory rate reduction was slapped on, with the option to leave if you didn't like it. If you decided to stay then the T&C's were straight out of an Orwellian parallel universe. e.g. they could dump you with 2 weeks notice, but you had no right to terminate prematurely, etc. Hays didn't get it all their own way either. They were forced into reducing their rate uplift, but in return they got a much bigger slice of the IBM pie. If I were a betting man I'd put my money on there being a similar kind of deal under the table.

15% cut

Rate cut

I have been asked to agree (by return email) to a 15% rate cut with 7 days notice. There is nothing in the contract that says they can vary the rate, I have been advised by PCG legal to negotiate on the cut, surely Hays should do that but are not offering any help. With only 4 weeks left on my contract I am not sure what to do. Bet IBM aren't cross charging the customer less for us. This week my council tax bill amongst others have risen, talk about kick you where it hurts.